


Good Advice

by bewaretheboojum



Category: Batman (Comics), DCU, DCU (Comics), Shazam (Comics)
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Gen, Philadelphia, Turtles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-18
Updated: 2018-01-18
Packaged: 2019-03-06 06:58:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13405890
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bewaretheboojum/pseuds/bewaretheboojum
Summary: Summary: Billy gives Tim some advice.Warnings: Spoilers for a Lonely Place of Living





	Good Advice

The sun seemed to rise faster in Philadelphia than it did in Gotham City. The dull pink glow peeking out from behind the skyscrapers turned orange, then yellow, pushing through the smog and breaking out into a brilliant and glorious sunrise that seemed much brighter and more vibrant than it ever had in Gotham.

Tim wasn't sure if the sense of unease lingering in the base of his stomach had to do with the unfamiliarity of the skyline or how fast it embraced the light, but…

Tim’s bust in Philadelphia had been successful. He’d noticed the pattern in arms distribution, spotted the epicenter on the Philadelphia docks, followed the right leads, tipped off the cops at the right moment. When things came to a head and the perps tried to flee, Tim swooped down and caught them, delivering them unharmed to the Philadelphia Police Department. He saved the day. He put arms dealers in prison, cut off a major supply route and did it all without anyone getting shot.

It was a success. 

But the knot in Tim’s stomach wouldn’t let him turn away from the city. It wouldn’t let him leave. It wouldn’t let him go back to Gotham City and just…

Just stop. Just leave. Just go home and sleep. 

Tim hadn’t been sleeping well. Not since the drones, not since the flash of bright light, not since that small, stifling, stinking room.

Not since Oz.

Closing his eyes against the brightness of the sun coming up blindingly behind William Penn’s figure on top of City Hall, Tim let the cool spring breeze brush across his face.

Tim’s eyelids stung with fatigue. Pulling his gauntlets off with his teeth, Tim rubbed at his eyes with his knuckles. Running his palms over his face, Tim pushed his hands up into his hair, pulling his bangs back off his forehead. Tipping his head up, Tim looked away from the rising dawn and back into the still still dark sky in the West.

Tim took a deep breath of the cool morning air and looked up into the still darkened portion of the sky directly above him. His vision blurred slightly as he watched thin strands of cirrus cloud cover drift across the sky, their shape undisturbed by the wind until…

A bright red figure bisected the clouds, vapors trailing out after his feet as he did a twist in the air and arced down out of the sky toward the skyscraper where Tim sat.  
Shazam was an impressive figure, long legs, broad shoulders, firm, square jaw, bright white and gold cape fluttering in the morning breeze. His voice was rich baritone when he spoke.

“Hello, I’m--”

“Shazam, yes. I’ve heard of you,” Tim said, standing up.

A small smile touched the corners of Shazam’s mouth.

“I’ve heard a little about you too, Red Robin.”

Tim tilted his head in acknowledgement. 

“I should have let you know I’d be on your turf tonight. I apologize.”

Shazam shook his head, and drifted over to the skyscraper to sit down next to where Tim stood. He patted the concrete embankment next to him and Tim settled back down by Shazam’s side.

“I’m not like the other guys. I don’t really believe in “turf.” I’m happy for the help. To be honest, busting organized crime is not my strong suit...”

Tim nodded silently and let out a long breath.

“Yeah… I know.”

The silence stretched between them as they watched the sun peek out from behind some of the lower skyscrapers. 

“You know, just a couple of miles from here is a wildlife refuge. My parents take me there--er. I mean. My parents used to take me there when I was a kid.”

Tim rolled his head to give Shazam a sideways look.

“I know you’re my age, dude.”

“Wha-- How do you even--?” Shazam stammered.

“De.Tec.Tive.” Tim said, biting off each syllable. “Your name is Billy Batson. You live at 153 North--”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know my own address,” Shazam said, waving a hand at Tim. “Man, you suck. I kinda wanted to be the cooler older superhero who offers sage wisdom to the youngins.” 

Tim couldn’t help but smile and breathe out a laugh.

“Right now, I could use a little sage wisdom, regardless of your age.”

“Yeah?” Billy asked, hopefully.

“Yeah.” Tim said, surprised at how sincerely he meant that.

“Yeah well, I was just gonna say how, right next to this big, old city and the roads and buildings and the pollution and the people, there’s this wildlife refuge. It’s nestled in between some old apartment buildings and holding silos for crude oil. So, even with the overcrowding and the cars and the trash, there’s this spot where you can see Bald Eagles building their nest and see these turtles that are endangered almost everywhere but there, and there’s beavers and frogs, and big white birds. And it’s just-- It’s just that you wouldn’t expect it there, right? So close to the violence and the poverty that tears through the city there’s these little turtles, still surviving...”

“Am I supposed to be the turtle in this metaphor, or…?”

Billy shook his head.

“You know, I don’t know. I don’t even know that it’s supposed to be a metaphor. I just know… I just know that thinking about those little turtles makes me happy. It makes me feel like, things maybe aren’t so bad after all. If the turtles can make it work, so can I.”

Tim was quiet for a few long minutes, taking in what Billy had said. 

He thought about the cell Oz had trapped him in. He thought about the failed escape attempts and how bad it hurt every time he ended up right back where he started. He thought about how no one had looked for him, how no one had come. He thought about the miserable and disappointing homecoming. He thought about Steph shouting at him, and Bruce mistrusting him. He thought about the nightmares and he thought about all the work he still needed to do.

And then he thought about the turtles. 

Tim leaned back on his hands and tilted his head up towards the morning sun. 

“Turtles, huh?” 

“Yeah,” Billy said. “Rad little ones that like to live in the mud and have awesome orange tummies.”

Tim smiled and looked over at Billy.

“You are, for sure, my age.”

“I, for sure, am. But sometimes I do give good advice.”

“Yeah,” Tim agreed. “I think maybe, sometimes, you do.”

**Author's Note:**

> In my head, Billy loves all the animals. Especially tigers and turtles.
> 
> But seriously, Tim and Billy need to be bros.


End file.
